HELP- NEED SUGGESTIONS- Cat Trapping !!

[KatMom]

OK , here it goes.... If you are trapping cats/kittens to get them fixed & hopefully find a few NEW LOVING HOMES. These are all Strays by the way. You find out the reason your traps are not working is an Elderly Lady keeps letting them back out !! :eek: You try to explain that you are trying to do whats BEST for the animals....Shots ; Spay /Neuter; and possibly a Permanant home. She agrees ....but still lets them loose. You call a person from the Humane Society to come talk to her....again she agrees....but still lets them loose !!

ANY SUGGESTIONS ANYBODY ??????

NO ;I cannot sedate her for a few days. No; I cannot afford to send her on vacation for a week. Other than that I am fair game !!! (That was 2 suggestions from a friend at the humane society) She was trying to be funny !! LOL

She's been caught Red Handed & still Denies she's doing this !! I'm at my WITS end !! I try sneaking out late to see if I have caught anything.....I don't think this Woman Sleeps.....
I replaced my traps with ones from the Humane Society....they are more difficult to open. I thought mine was not working because the doors don't always lock down. Now I know WHY they were not working !!

AGAIN ; ANY SUGGESTIONS ANYBODY ?????? I am trying to keep a sense of humor about this....But I am starting to pull what's left of my hair out !

Jan ; this is why I said the other day..........We can only do so much !!!
If she is not letting them out she's hiding my cages, and feeding the strays
tons of food so they don't go for the trap ! We have well over 40 cats here in the complex. Some are pregnant again. I have rounded up Help...with spay/ neuter....shots ....adoptions.....food.....rescue groups.....even a few farms for the ones that are not tameable..... everyone is waiting for the kitties to show up !! I cannot get past this woman.....She is in her late 70's and the worst competition I have ever went up against !!

HELP
Thanks for any help/ suggestions
KatMom

PS; THANK YOU DENNIS !!! For being so responsible with your stray babies !!!
I keep thinking if this woman was only more like YOU !!!

[KatMom]

Well , here's an update;
4 more cats were turned loose , 2 were pregnant ones. I called the owner of the apartment complex . He had been helping periodically with the cat problem.....But was not that gung ho about it. After telling him how many cats have been spotted here he came right over. I had photo's to prove it. The owner was here had a few words with the woman. The Police were called.....
I think the owner just wanted to STRESS the seriousness of the Cat problem.
The owner is taking Night watch duty .....for the Cat traps. The Humane society is taking early morning to lunch. I am taking from Lunch time till night.

After everyone found out Why I was not able to deliver the cats/ kittens....I have Tons of help !! As of 11:56 tonight we have 9 cats in custody & 13 kittens under 9 weeks old.

For those 2 people that privately emailed me THANKS A BUNCH !!! I Would not have thought to call the police....and was hesitant to get the owner involved. Like I said he was not that ambitious before about the cat rescue project. Hopefully this will work out !!!! TO many here ......need vet help & need to be spayed / neutered !!
Thanks
KatMom

[Squawksx3]

OMG Kat... Im sorry, but I was cracking up when reading your first post LMBO!. Slipping some NyQuil in the old womans prune juice came to mind :eek: . I guess hiring a security guard to stand by her door 24/7 would be out of the question. If only she could understand that you're just trying to help these cats. The more they reproduce, the more sickness, disease and starvation they live with. Bless your heart for not giving up. Contacting the owner was a wonderful idea and I'm glad he finally understood the seriousness of it. Im glad the police could help also. What are you going to do with the cats/kittens once they're vetted?. Are you doing a "trap/neuter/return"?. Its been very successful in CA... but alot of people dont believe in returning the cats to the wild to continue to fend for themselves. We have rescue groups that feed and check on the feral "trap/neuter/return" colony's daily and its working out really well. The other option for feral cats is euthanization... the older ones are to wild and will never be pet quality.

Good luck in your rescue venture!!!.... keep us updated..and let me know if you need some NyQuil! hahahahahaha :D

[Squawksx3]

ok.. after reading your first post a second time... without the tears from laughing so hard.. I see that you have rescue groups, possible homes and farms to send the cats to. Best of luck... you're doing a wonderful thing... keep up the good work!. ;)

[the voice of]

I think sterilize and return policy is the best policy as far as population control goes, it really has worked well for my area of sothern california, if the yet wild cats attempt to breed with the steril cats, the birthrate goes down. I think lowering the feril birthrate is much more imoprtant than merely plucking individuals from the popluation. Because the wild cat population is ultimately the problem. Correct?

But any combination of reduction methods would serve your cause
good luck with the cats, and the old lady

mike

[KatMom]

YES; I know ....If I wasn't going crazy I'd be laughing too !!! LOL !! NYQUIL ??? HHHHHmmmmmmmmm I'll keep that in mind !! I was thinking velcro her nightgown to the carpeting.... He! He! He! I never give up as far as animals are concerned. NONE of the animals will be destroyed. THe Older ones are going to Farms to live out their days.....The others will be adopted out..... None are coming back to the complex here due to high traffic VERY near by. I've seen to many hit right outside the complex. The way they drive inside the complex is not much better. I fear for myself some-times since I cannot run out of the way right now. (Hobble out of the way maybe !! ;) We have several apartment complexes here right on top of one another. With a very high turn over rate....Military families & Others come & go ALOT. Many Cats & kittens have been left behind. So 40 is all I have seen in our complex lately....There may be more . Since I was unable to get out very much physically....I was not aware that it was that bad. Then taking Matt to work late one night....I came home to about 20 cats sitting in the yard. I thought I was seeing things. I flicked the high beams on, I was not seeing things....all these little Glowy eyes were flickering. I knew something had to be done. We kept seeing more & more kittens show up ! So the War began with the Old Lady. I am hoping this ends it with her..... But I may have to use that Nyquil Suggestion !! ;)
Take Care
KatMom

PS; We have one major 4 lane highway near by....I could hobble to it. Plus our road and more construction to add more....buildings , and joining roads to the Highway. This is not a safe place for any of them.....We caught more over night & a few more this morning.....Operation relocation is finally on it's way !! YEAH !!!!!

[Dutchman]

Kathy, I can see where this has certainly been problem to you. I'm glad to hear that you've made progress now. I saw were you've caught quite a few now, but have a fair amount left. I wish you the best luck. You are certainly doing this kittens and cats a big favor.

Hopefully I can catch my 3rd black kitty today so Jan can pick it up. She's going to foster it herself until a good home for it can be found. I'm also look forward to getting the one I am keeping, "Cleopatra" back into the house again. I just want to hold her in my arms or lap again, pet her and give her a lot of love.

Dutchman

[KatMom]

Yes; I know how much you want your Baby back in your arms...... I hope you can do that real soon !! I just feel bad for these kitties....they need a safe place to be, not here by a 4 lane highway. Plus alot of the little ones have gooey eye, and snotty nose. So I was determined to start doing something.... It is getting cooler here in the evenings now. I don't want them curling up in warm car motors etc.... to get hurt "UNKNOWINGLY" . My Crew has been on the window ledge watching the babies outside. I'll get them one at a time !! Kiss David for me "DAD"...good Luck with sister Cleo !!!
HUGS :D
KatMom

PS; Good Luck Catching renegade # 3 too !!!

[KatMom]

OK ..... We have The Old Lady being watched by the General's wife
We have several more apartment complexes helping in our quest now.
Last count tonight at 11:33 PM
This is a complete Toll counting last nights....
Cats= 53 = 12 of those are pregnant that we know of...
Kittens=31 =from 3 to 12 weeks old but 2 in real rough shape
Teenage Cat/ Kittens.... =29

For the GRAND TOTAL OF = 113 so far

2 of our Soldiers found 5 dead kitty babies under a maintenance building ( We didn't count those ) But did give them a burial.
===========================

THANKS TO THE MANY VOLUNTEERS Today
The Humane Societies= we had 4 here that I know of.
Rescue Groups.....
Friends & neighbors
21 off duty Soldiers Armed with butterfly nets today=( YOU GUYS ROCK )
***Plus Many Many Thanks to the General's wife for entertaining our little Old Lady so she couldn't set any Cats FREE AGAIN Today !!!

I have not seen anymore roaming after today's Full blast rescue.....But I have lots of volunteers to continue checking traps for awhile to make sure.
SADLY 15 of those found today that went directly to a vet...Were feline FIV positive. They Will be Spayed/ Neutered and taken to a farm in Alabama to live out their days. It is a Farm fenced etc.... where they can roam . The Owners specialize in taking care of FIV positive animals. The owners are a Husband & Wife Vet team... That wish to remain anonymous.... If anymore are found to be FIV positive .....They will take them too.

Today's rescue efforts was not really planned..... I emailed a friend at the local military base. I was filling him in on our efforts here . Including our Little Old Lady setting them Free again. He thought that was Hilarious !! By early afternoon people were showing up to help. His Drill Sargent friend spread the word...on base & off.
In hours they were more organized than my weeks of planning. Together we made a Miracle Happen today for lots of Furr-Children. I am totally exhausted so I am going to call it a day. I'll keep all of you updated on the health of the critters....and after vet visits etc....I'll see about posting some pics. I got a few of the Soldiers rounding up kitties with nets...and alot more.
THANKS EVERYONE :D
KatMom

[draper]

That is totally cool that you are doing that! I have a neighbor that took in a pregnant stray cat, and once the kittens were 2 weeks old - Mom bolted and hasn't been seen since! I found a home for one of the kittens, they found a home for another one and since no one wanted the last one they kept it. Here's the problem. They don't believe in spaying/neutering, and they let the male kitten out all the time! The last time, he was at my apartment meowing (just like his Mom used to) and, after playing a game of you-can't-catch-me, I managed to catch him and return him! The owner told me that she was sick of making sure that he didn't get out, and that as far as she was concerned, the cat was an outside cat. When you consider that there are ATLEAST ten other cats that are either strays or let out by their owners, plus there is a major street a stones throw from the apt, several other apartment complexes close by, and residental homes that are even closer to me that the other side of the apartment complex. I have talked to the humane society, and they said that if I trap them - they will come and get them. Seems like someone is already doing that to a neighbor that likes to let his cats out - he had to go to the HS to pick them up. Want to hear the kicker? The cat is like 15 years old, and was back outside THAT NIGHT! Makes me kind of mad.

[KatMom]

Some States ....the owners can be fined. Plus the animal gets a New Loving home. It's a Win - Win situation..... My Heart just goes out to them so badly. I look at my spoiled 3 and I think they realize how GOOD they got it.
After seeing all of them in my Yard that night , the following morning, a kitten with his face pasted shut was on my porch. I un-gooed his face & went to the vet. He now owns a very nice lady at the Bank. I stopped at the Bank on the way home from the vet office.....Barb fell in Love with the Furr child. 2 weeks later & a clean bill of health, they adopted each other. That's when I started making calls & researching who was available in the area to Help me. People have been fantastic !! Not knowing to many people here ...It all came together VERY QUICKLY !! After much research.....We have narrowed it down to ......... This whole Feral colony was started with a housecat Named MISTY. MISTY was an indoor/outdoor kitty and was never altered. She gave birth twice....Before the owner put her out permanantly. After that MISTY kept having kittens here at the complex.

MISTY's original owner lives in a real nice 2 story home that I could only dream of having. She lives right down the road from us. MISTY was Microchipped .....so we were able to track her original owner down. She told the Humane Society ...YES, it "WAS" my Cat , but it's not anymore....It kept having kittens so we put her out. (THE NERVE & STUPIDITY OF SOME PEOPLE !! ) The Humane Society is starting legal proceedings against her .
I am not sure WHAT can be done here in Georgia. Every State is different !
Good Luck with your neighbor !! & The Cat
KatMom

PS; WE have no idea who or how many -Male Cats were with MISTY.

['too crazy]

Wow KatMom, 113 cats. You sure did have a problem! :eek: I'm so glad you didn't give up but hung in there until you got help. Hopefully Misty's owner's will get into trouble but more than likely, it'll probably be $100 fine. A drop in the bucket compared to all the problems and cats that came from letting her go.

[KatMom]

I know she will get a slap on the wrist more than likely....But here they have a embarrassment rule going on. She will be in the paper & what she has done. So she may be high society today....but will look like DIRT in the Paper when it comes out. Everyone WILL be aware. " She's an Executive & her husband is a Dr. " It will not be good publicity...... That eases my mind a little. But my heart still aches for all those babies yesterday. Dirty , hungry, in need of medical attention..... I'm going over to the rescue group later today to see some of them & find out how things are going with them all.
I wish there were tougher laws against people like that. I sign petition after petition to try and do what I can. I keep wishing I could do more..........
Take Care
KatMom

Thanks for everyones concern & help.....I'll keep you posted . It may take a few days; as I will be helping in the shelters & rescues trying to get them all vetted & transported to where they NEED to be.

['too crazy]

Well with their money, embarrassment will work better than a fine. I'd be the type to cut the artical out of the paper and tape it on the door of his building for all the patients to see. :D Keep up the good work KatMom. All the little kitty's thank you!

[KatMom]

I plan on getting quite a few papers myself that day !!
I have thought about Quite a few things ....places to post them etc....
What a @%&*@%!!*** It makes me sick someone can treat animals that way !
Too Crazy ...you sure we aren't related ? We're on the same mind-set !! LOL !! :D

KatMom

['too crazy]

Hummmm I'm starting to think we are but that's ok by me. Imagine if we put our minds together the damage we could do. :D

[Lee Kilgore]

You're allright KatMom!!!

[Lee Kilgore]

Hi KatMom!
You are something else!
My son Matt is an Army Ranger, stationed @ Ft. Benning, Georgia. At the moment he is home here in Maine on leave and when he and Awgee met, it was love at first sight. She follows him everywhere and sleeps with him. She usually crashes at night with my husband and I, but since Matt came home to visit, she only has eyes for him! He even gets kitty kisses from her and he says that Awgee is the coolest cat he ever met. He is heading back for Georgia tomorrow morning.
I got such a chuckle out of the General's wife running interference for you. I can't wait to tell Matt about that! I wouldn't be surprised if the Army doesn't try to enlist you for your coordination genius!
You GO GIRL!
Lee

[KatMom]

Hi Lee;
That is GREAT AWGEE LOVES MATT so much..... I think that's the Best !!
Nothing like all the children gettinga long LOL !! I'll Private message you my address etc.... Your son Matt can give us a Yell down here anytime ! I am very close to there !

too crazy ; I think it may be a good thing we live so far apart !! We could definetly cause WAY to much damage !! :D
KatMom

[KatMom]

OK ; out of all the kitties we lost 1 due to a bad upper respiratory infection.
We found out approx. 45 were FIV positive.... They went to the FIV farm in Alabama with the Husband & Wife Vet team !!! YEAH !!!! The rest are up for adoption as soon as they are fixed (Spayed / Neutered) and given a good bill of health. This past weekend at petsmart 19 of those first caught got homes......others are waiting to be fixed and get well ...... snotty nose etc... before they can be adopted.
1 Kitty ; Fixed & up to date with shots.....was given to the Old Lady that kept setting them all FREE !!! We found out she wanted 1 for herself. So a Little Black & white tuxedo guy was given to her yesterday ( she picked him out) He was the tiniest one of all (Not the youngest ; but the smallest )..... She agreed to keep him indoors....and she named him Freedom. Freedom has been eating Chicken and lots of Kitten Chow when I visited briefly today. But likes to play in the water bowl a bit ...LOL

We have caught a few more.....but I don't have any info on them yet.
I think there was 6 more since I wrote last. I was given a check from the property owner for my help. Even though the Money would be nice....I divided it up between the rescue groups that took the kitties. I was VERY Thankful they were able to help us !! The FIV farm would not take anything...
So I offered to paint a wall mural for their Vet office as soon as I can stand up better .

I could not have done it without all their HELP !!!! I contacted the Military guys that helped & they agreed the money should go to the Rescue groups.
But the property owner took all the Military guys out to dinner at Red Lobster Last night for their HELP !!!
I hope all had a Great Halloween ......
Thanks for the suggestions and feed back
KatMom

['too crazy]

I've never heard of a FIV farm but I'm glad to know there is one out there. I bet they never got 45 cats at once though! :eek: But God bless them for taking them all.

Good work KatMom! It's nice to hear happy stories because there are way to many bad ones out there. You had a hand in saving all those cats. You should be proud. And to split up the check was an awsome thing to do. You are truely a hero.

[KatMom]

Hi Too Crazy ;
The FIV farm does not advertise.... They are a Husband & Wife team of vets. They own a huge farm and their office is a renovated Barn. He generally takes care of Horses, cattle etc..... While she specializes in the smaller critters. About 10 yrs ago....someone dumped a Yellow/ Orange kitty in their yard, of course kitty ran right for the house.... Being Vets they checked out the Baby and found it to be FIV positive. They did not have the heart to turn it out or put it to sleep. About 4 months later a Full grown cat was thrown from a car ( they saw it happen & got a tag no#. This cat too was FIV positive ) So the Farm began..... Since they could not keep any cats that were not FIV positive after these 2 adoptions....The Farm began. Actually I am not the biggest donar of cats they had.... They own several hundred acres. they have reserved about 200 that is strictly for these cats With a huge barn. There was a huge Feral colony in southern Kentucky , The vets took in 139 cats. Not all are still living, that was a few years ago.
They do not advertise or anything. Because they would have more than they could handle. I found out through much digging & questioning everyone. A Vet dropped a hint after I mentioned how many we had here. But would not give me a name. Another animal control officer heard the general location of the farm by word of mouth.....So I called every Vet in that area explaining my problem. I finally found them after MANY calls to Alabama. I just kept calling up one after another.... They refuse interviews, or anyone that wants to put out a article. It took quite a conversation before I knew I had the right place. I explained my problem....gave my name , phone number....my vet as reference.. , address ....etc..and I was still not 100% sure. The next day I got a call back and was told I checked out OK. She said YES ,we will take any you have with FIV and I was given directions. I was told not to give out their name or number.... So to them I am very THANKFUL !! Their office / barn nicely decorated .....the WAlls are completely covered with photo's of all the Furr children they have adopted over the years. AS you go into the exam rooms they have started to line those walls too. It is truly a unique & great place. So are the VETS there. :D
KatMom

[Sondra]

When I moved into my neighboorhood, I had a nice old lady right next door and no idea about what I moved into. Nice old lady from England had about 40 cats roaming around (including various kittens). She also did not understand, why my friends and I where trapping them and handraising various kittens and jumped in to help in the only possible way. She did not listen, and as I said, she was otherwise a lovely Lady with a heart of Gold. Here is my advice. What we did was, we put special delicatesses in the trap, Salmon, chicken, tuna, fish fresh from the fishmarket and if this did not work, catnip all over the trap(a field day for an unneutered stray cat). Then we waited in a distance (like 7 meters away). The cats are attracted to this combination of tasty fish and catnip. With a little or sometimes a lot patience the cat steps in it and you take it to the vet right away. This way the nice old lady will not have a chance to open the trap. Of course, you can also take her fear away by bringing her the cat back, after she is fixed, so that she sees that you only want to help. There is a very good trap neuter and release program, most vets can inform you about it. Here in Florida it is the cat network and the pet discount clinic. So, I wish you luck.

[KatMom]

We have it under control now..... I've been trapping for 20 yrs. It's the Old Lady I needed help with mostly. We have several highways close by and they were getting hit left & right. If it had not been for that I would have done the Trap/ Fix, shots/ release program. This is just NOT safe for any stray critter here. But Thanks to the Military guys, and various pet rescue groups....we got it down to a very dull roar now. Only 2 have been spotted that we are unable to get just yet. But If I can keep everyone from feeding them (so far so good ) We will catch them !! Just a matter of time. We came close this morning, but a truck on the highway roared and that was it.
I can see the highway from where my car is parked....4 lanes of traffic. Not counting all the other roads, they are putting in.
Thanks
KatMom

[G_Unit]

I would love to have one of your rescued kitties, but I'm afraid I can't afford a new kitten right now. *sigh* We just moved into an apartment complex and there are some cats running around here that seem to belong to the people downstairs right underneath us, but I don't think they let them in. We live on a fairly busy corner and it worries me, but those cats won't come to me at all.

There is ONE running around who is black and white and very sweet. The night of the lunar eclipse I went outside to look at it and something rubbed against my leg and scared the bejeesus out of me...it was that black and white cat. I petted her and it didn't take me long to realize that she's pregnant. Do you think I should try to catch her or call a local rescue or something? I don't want to bring her in because I don't want to expose my cats to anything that she might be carrying. I lost a cat about 7 years ago to FIV and it broke my heart.

-Lisa

[KatMom]

Call local rescue groups FIRST !!! To see who may be able to take her before grabbing her and no place to take her. You would be doing her a Great favor if she was taken to a No-Kill facility. She will be fixed and her babies may find good homes ....It's a Win /Win situation !! That's better than having her on the street having more kittens as soon as this batch is born.
The kittens will have proper Vet care too.
Good Luck
KatMom

[penn5905]

All i can say is ...bless you Katmom. I live in Ohio in a very small town. We are so small that we are actually called a village. We have problems with cat population too. I have fourteen myself ..plus three dogs. All but one cat were rescues. I have just between yesterday and today found homes for three strays. The homes i found were responsible people that are going to take care of them. I hate when these people just let them go outside without getting them spayed or neutered. It is a real problem here. Our local Rite Aid has many ...many cats/kittens in back of the store. I have been trying for over a year to catch this female cat that seems to reproduce at a drop of a hat. I cannot get within four feet of her. I can't set out any traps as they for sure will get stolen. I thought of tranquilizing but i am afraid she will wonder off and i won't be able to find her. Just last night i caught one of her last offspring. It was a beautiful gray fur ball. Of course it is a female. I am glad i caught her..she has a good home and will be taken to the vet later on this week. I heard this cat is pregnant again so there will be that many more up there to deal with. I know what you are up against. Too many cats...not enough homes and not enough people care.